Date: Fri, 07 Feb 2003 09:10:29 -0600 From: rob spellberg <emailrob@emailrob.com> To: freebsd-chat@FreeBSD.ORG Subject: Re: The lack of common sense wrt recent issues Message-ID: <3E43CC65.A20418DB@emailrob.com> References: <200302070848.h178mTaX011012@grimreaper.grondar.org>
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Mark Murray wrote:
> Sort of. I believe that it is the Japanese who say that if
> someone loses his temper, he automatically loses the argument.
>
> If you can't keep control, you shouldn't be playing the game.
this is one form.
another, which is particularly amusing to observe and
which comes to us from the 24-hour floggers of current events,
comes from politics and policy.
in this arena, it is considered impolitic to lose one's temper.
conclusive evidence that one party to a discussion
has determined for themselves that they have lost the debate
is when they shift to
"harrumph - i am so offended;
to think that i, a Good Person, would have been deceived into
engaging in debate with a neanderthal such as you"
mode and make an "ad hominem" attack.
in spite of this shift, they retain both politeness and quiet tone.
currently, two of the most popular and, therefore,
least effective of these attacks are variants of:
a] "you're a racist" and
b] "you just want to help your rich friends".
polite harrumphness: whatever the topic, you can bet the mortgage.
rob spellberg
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